Bay Bridge eastern span opens

Distinctive, single spire reshapes regional skyline

The Bay Bridge - now with a soaring, signature tower anchoring the new east span - is finally open.

At 10:15 p.m. Monday, Caltrans and the California Highway Patrol took down barricades at on-ramps and interchanges and let traffic flow to the bridge for the first time since Wednesday night, when it was closed to allow construction crews to make the transition from the old east span to the $6.4 billion new span.

The bridge had been scheduled to open at 5 a.m. Tuesday. But construction went smoothly, and Caltrans Director Malcolm Dougherty announced at the dedication ceremony that it would open Monday night.

Soon after the first car zipped through a Fastrak lane at the north side of the toll plaza, hundreds more followed. Traffic increased as the CHP gradually opened ramps and interchanges leading to the bridge. Within a half hour, traffic was crawling toward the metering lights, which remained green. It was the new Bay Bridge's first traffic jam.

Unlike the morning commute, when drivers curse and clutch their steering wheels, motorists honked their horns, hooted and hollered. Some of those stuck in traffic chatted with other drivers and exchanged high fives.

Surj Gish, a 40-year-old writer from Oakland, waited two-and-a-half hours at the West Grand on-ramp for his chance to be one of the first across the bridge. He wasn't disappointed.

"I didn't have many expectations," he said as he stood outside his car after getting off the bridge at Treasure Island. "But when you come around that curve and go under the wires, it's cathedral-like. It was pretty breathtaking."

Before the bridge could open, it had to endure one final bureaucratic delay: a two-hour dedication ceremony larded with 14 speeches, mostly from politicians.

While nearly 1,000 dignitaries and guests gathered in a refurbished Caltrans warehouse turned into a meeting place and potential museum, scores of construction workers applied the finishing touches to the new eastern span Monday afternoon.

All of the major work connecting the new span to the toll plaza and Yerba Buena Island tunnels had been completed by morning but contractors were still applying striping, installing railings and signs, and cleaning up the new bridge for its debut. Several of the speakers talked of the hard work that created the bridge and the appropriateness of the bridge opening on Labor Day.

Workers recognized

Mike Flowers, chief executive officer of American Bridge Co., the lead contractor, said workers from all over the world contributed to the bridge and deserved recognition.

"The (self-anchored suspension span) is like my little girl," he said. "It changed my life. And it's going to change many lives."

Several speakers mentioned the Loma Prieta earthquake, which killed one driver when her car plunged into a gap in the road when a section of the east span collapsed. The collapse spurred an investigation into the seismic fitness of all the state's large bridges and, eventually, a recommendation to replace the Bay Bridge's eastern span.

"None of us should ever forget that the new east span is first and foremost a seismic safety project," said Steve Heminger, executive director of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. "And that it is being finished before the next big earthquake. That the bridge is so good-looking is just a bonus."

Traditional chain-cutting

After the speeches, the crowd made its way to the toll plaza, strolling across the eastbound lanes. Lt. Gov. - and former San Francisco mayor - Gavin Newsom wielded a cutting torch and burned through a length of chain held up by other dignitaries, a Bay Bridge tradition started in 1936 when then-Gov. Frank Merriam did the deed. Several minutes later, a procession of motor vehicles - from CHP motorcycles to Model A's to Teslas to an AC Transit bus - squeezed through the toll booths and slowly made its way across the new east span.

With the new span open, drivers should avoid the urge to slow down and gawk or pull over and take photographs, said CHP Officer Daniel Hill.

One of the reasons that no specific opening time was announced was because the CHP did not want drivers flocking to the bridge, lining up at barricades or pulling off on the side of the road for the chance to be among the first to cross the new span, said Hill.

Stopping on the side of the freeway except for an emergency is illegal, he said, and the CHP will be prepared to cite drivers who do so. The same admonition goes for the new bridge, which not only has wide-open views but also shoulders where drivers could, but should not, pull over to take pictures.

The CHP escorted the first drivers across the new span then monitored traffic to keep it flowing - but not too fast. With no S-curve, and no steel girders alongside the road, drivers have a straighter shot to and from the Yerba Buena tunnel, as well as unobstructed views.

Hill said the CHP has done a speed survey on the new span and set the limit at 50 mph - the same as the old span, except for the S-curve. But they know some drivers may be tempted to go faster.

"The open feeling may give some people the inclination to accelerate," Hill said. "We want to let people know that is not acceptable to the Highway Patrol."

Drivers wait along Powell Street in Emeryville, Calif., for the new eastern span of the Bay Bridge to open on Monday evening. They were rewarded shortly after 10pm Monday September 2, 2013 as the bridge was opened hours ahead of schedule.

Drivers wait along Powell Street in Emeryville, Calif., for the new eastern span of the Bay Bridge to open on Monday evening. They were rewarded shortly after 10pm Monday September 2, 2013 as the bridge was

Drivers wait along Powell Street in Emeryville, Calif., for the new eastern span of the Bay Bridge to open on Monday evening. They were rewarded shortly after 10pm Monday September 2, 2013 as the bridge was opened hours ahead of schedule.

Drivers wait along Powell Street in Emeryville, Calif., for the new eastern span of the Bay Bridge to open on Monday evening. They were rewarded shortly after 10pm Monday September 2, 2013 as the bridge was